It has previously been proposed to provide arrangements for locking electrical connectors together, once the male and female plugs are in engagement with one another. One such arrangement is disclosed in G. L. Gray, U.S. Pat. No. 3,890,025 granted June 7, 1975, wherein the grounding plug for a three-terminal plug is formed in two parts, and a camming member is rotated to separate the two parts and force them into lateral engagement with the mating female receptacle. However, this is a relatively complex arrangement and requires separate operation of the locking element to release the plug prior to pulling the two plugs apart.
Accordingly, an important object of the present invention is to provide a simpler locking arrangement, and one in which the unlocking step occurs naturally as the two plugs are pulled apart, with a single motion.